Is China using its soft power diplomacy and Buddhist narratives to lure countries with Buddhist leanings, such as Sri Lanka, to further its Belt and Road Initiatives (BRI)?
The answer is yes; China is using soft power diplomacy to promote the BRI, including appealing to Buddhist countries. China has invested in temples, monasteries, and other Buddhist sites in countries like Sri Lanka and sent Buddhist monks to promote Buddhist teachings. This has allowed China to leverage its relationship with Buddhist countries and gain support for its initiatives.
These are the questions asked by many, but it appears that China’s foreign policy pursuits are also interrelated with religious diplomacy.
A rising power on the world stage, China tries hard to minimize criticism about its policies under the pretense of being a benevolent power. China has been actively promoting the idea that it is a major global player and a responsible and benevolent power. To this end, it has engaged in religious diplomacy with countries around the world. This is to foster better relations with them and deflect criticism about its policies. China has also invested heavily in soft power, using cultural and economic initiatives to gain influence. It has also engaged in international aid projects and promoted its economic development model. This is done to project an image of a responsible and caring power. And expand on its Belt and Road initiative. By expanding on its Belt and Road initiative, China aims to demonstrate its responsible and caring nature to international audiences. It strengthens diplomatic ties and reduces criticism of its policies. The Belt and Road Initiative is China’s ambitious plan to build infrastructure projects in countries across the world. The goal is to create an international Silk Road of commerce and communication, connecting China to the world. By engaging in international aid projects and promoting its economic development model, China hopes to show that it is a responsible and caring power. It is capable of providing assistance to countries in need. This helps strengthen diplomatic ties and reduces criticism of its policies.
At the same time, there are doubts about its legitimacy since it could harbor something sinister at the expense of the people to whom it lends a helping hand. It could use resources from the government or donations to provide such assistance. This has caused some to worry that it takes advantage of people in need. Critics argue that this creates a dangerous cycle of dependency and does not promote self-sufficiency. Others are concerned that it creates an incentive for countries to stay in poverty since it provides a means of support and prevents people from taking responsibility for their own lives.
Eventually, they may use all their power to grab everything poor countries have. This has happened to several African countries.
Recently, the Chinese envoy in Colombo met with Buddhist prelates in Kandy, raising many questions about their sincerity. It is a matter to ponder seriously about the intentions of the Chinese, who are trying to achieve their objectives in various ways. People tend to ask if diplomacy is a bitter pill with a sugar coating. It is a legitimate question, as the Chinese have a long history of using diplomacy to achieve their strategic objectives. In this case, it appears that the Chinese are trying to gain influence in Sri Lanka by offering economic aid and other incentives in exchange for diplomatic recognition and access to resources.
Recently, a ceremony at the Nelligala temple culminated the Faxian Charity Project’s handout spree in Kandy. The project is part of the Belt and Road Initiative, a Chinese foreign policy initiative to promote economic, political, and cultural ties with countries around the world. The project has caused some consternation among local citizens, who have voiced concerns about Chinese influence in the region. Hu Wei, China’s charge d’affaires in Sri Lanka, was present. He warned against allowing the Dalai Lama to visit the island in an interview with the local news website Sri Lanka Mirror. He said he spoke to senior prelates during his Kandy visit. Most of them know that the Dalai Lama is not a pure monk and is trying to play another very negative role in China and Sri Lanka’s relationship.
He also expressed hope that the Faxian Charity Project would soon cover the entire country.
A relatively new instrument of Chinese foreign policy is Buddhist-to-Buddhist diplomacy. Economic collapse in Sri Lanka, as well as societal distress, have provided an ideal setting for its deployment. In addition, Beijing needs new avenues of influence in Sri Lanka after its earlier bets on the island failed, threatening its influence in a place where it has deep economic as well as geopolitical interests. China has therefore sought Buddhist-to-Buddhist diplomacy to gain a foothold in the country. Chinese officials have held meetings with Sri Lankan Buddhist leaders and organized conferences to promote Chinese Buddhism. In addition, they provide financial support to Buddhist temples and Buddhist organizations.
This is also fresh ground for the Sri Lankan clergy, steeped in domestic political machinations but never before so cozy with a major international power. Since political and religious entanglements, particularly in Buddhism, have plagued Sri Lanka in its modern history, China’s Buddhist-to-Buddhist diplomacy cannot but cause concern.
Sri Lankan politics may be thrown into a fraught new dimension as monks vie for more power over the country’s international relations and domestic agenda.
Tabita Rosendal is a Ph.D. student in the Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies at Lund University and an affiliated researcher at the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies (NIAS).
in her paper titled “Belt and Road Buddhism in Sri Lanka?” Writes thus
“Under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a curious entanglement of economic investments and Buddhist diplomacy has been carried out in countries like Sri Lanka. This may appear an odd pairing, but it illuminates several interrelated trends in China’s foreign policy pursuits and its rise on the world stage. In recent years, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has worked hard to mitigate criticism of its policies and its increasing global presence by portraying itself as a benevolent power intent on improving its neighbors’ lives. To this end, the CCP’s strategic goals are increasingly advanced via “soft power” initiatives to persuade others of China’s harmonious intentions. But what does Xi Jinping’s flagship foreign policy initiative, the BRI, really have to do with Buddhism in Sri Lanka?
Since Sri Lanka’s 1983–2009 civil war, China’s economic presence has been a mainstay in the country. After the BRI’s inception in 2013, Chinese foreign direct investment and state-backed policy loans increased tremendously, particularly represented by port projects in Hambantota and Colombo, both associated with the maritime sphere of the BRI, known as the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Yet China is not the only major power with interests in Sri Lanka or the wider South and Southeast Asian regions.
Sri Lanka’s strategic position in the Indian Ocean ensures its relevance to other regional and international powers. This is especially true for those that make up the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, orQuad,: Australia, India, Japan, and the United States. The race is on to secure access to and use of Sri Lanka’s port placements, transshipment routes, and naval base potential. The Quad considers it crucial to displace China’s presence in the country and contain the CCP’s influence in the Indo-Pacific. So how does Buddhism fit in?
Despite the CCP’s harsh religious repression and control within China’s borders, the Chinese government is increasingly working to disseminate a positive narrative of its religious policies. This is to preserve or enhance its relations with countries that identify with those religions. As a complement to other foreign policy efforts, this strategy is designed to persuade other countries to support Chinese interests without coercion. Buddhist-majority countries like Sri Lanka have become prime targets of this approach.”
In short, China is propagating a contradictory policy in its enduring efforts to spread its wings across the globe. China, while taking harsh steps against religious freedoms within its own territory, follows a policy diametrically opposed to it elsewhere to win over neighbors through religious diplomacy. This is an extension of its soft power without coercion on its part. This is a stark contrast to other nations’ efforts to spread their influence and promote their interests. It shows a willingness to compromise on certain issues to gain increased influence in the international community. It also serves as an example of how countries can use soft power to make their voices heard. By engaging in constructive dialogue, nations can build relationships and exchange ideas. These relationships can lead to mutual understanding and collaboration on potential solutions to global problems. Furthermore, it allows nations to project their values and ideals in a way that is not seen as threatening or aggressive. Instead, it is seen as an invitation to a conversation.
However, what would be the end result? Many countries may walk into debt traps set by them. This may compromise their interests, and China is hoping to make inroads into the global landscape, pushing other powers behind them. This concerns many nations. Sri Lanka should think about what comes next after the Chinese niceties.
